2012-04-03

As you may or may not know, an Alberta election is underway. As its looking like there's a real solid chance that the Wildrose party can seize the reigns of power away from Alison "Red" Redford and her "Progressive" "Conservative" Party, I felt this would be a good time to bring up some of the disastrous legislation enacted by Red Redford's party.

Today this trip down memory lane takes us to 2010, and the day that the Alberta Government told you that you weren't allowed to protect yourself. You can read the disgusting legislation here.

In a year when Edmonton was getting a brief reprieve from our Nutralite Murder Cup winning streak and Calgary was...well, Calgary always seems to get off easy, the Alberta Government brought out Bill 12. It was an initiative to stop gangs.

1(1) In this Act,
(a) “body armour” means a garment or item designed, intended or adapted for the purpose of protecting the body from an item or object used to, or adapted to, stab, pierce, puncture or otherwise wound the body;

Well, apparently gang members were doing their own Clint, wandering around Alberta trying not to die whenever they got shot. Oddly enough, at no point has the Red Redford government ever dared suggest that these shot gang members be denied their public healthcare. So an action that Albertans (whether in a gang or not) take to reduce the risk of serious injury has been abolished, banned, taken away, all because the Solicitor General was worried that people who were in physical danger dared to do something about it. They're not in government, that's his job.

The ban covered more than just a bullet-resistant vest:

Issue of permit
8 On receiving an application from an applicant under section 6, the Registrar may issue a permit to the applicant or renew the permit of the applicant subject to the terms and conditions the Registrar considers appropriate.
Refusal of permit
9 The Registrar may refuse to issue a permit or to renew a permit if the Registrar is satisfied that the applicant
(a) has contravened or is contravening this Act or the regulations,
(b) has not met the requirements of this Act or the regulations,
(c) in the case of an application for a permit or renewal of a permit, has provided false or misleading information,
(d) in the case of an application for renewal of a permit, has not complied with the terms and conditions of the permit,
(e) is not a fit and proper person to be issued a permit or to continue to hold a permit,

That's right, it comes with its own licensing and registration bureaucracy. Remember back in the Ralph Klein days when Albertans were outraged when the federal government pulled this shit about our guns? Well, Red Redford just goes one step further and decides that the same useless process should also apply to defensive equipment.

Hey, waitaminute. Most of these guns being used by gangs to shoot each other are already illegal. What makes the government think they'll stop buying the body armour too?

The answer, of course, is they don't. This isn't going to ultimately impact gangs, this is going to impact you: you the ordinary everyday Albertan, possibly in a high risk occupation like cab driving or late night store clerk or bouncer. Sure you can apply for a permit, and go through the government hoops that no gang member would every be bothered by. The slow relentless growing of the size and scope of government, perpetrated by Red Redford and her "Progressive" "Conservative" Association of Alberta. You're paying for this...multiple times. You pay for the bureaucracy, you pay in having your own personal safety reduced by taking away your right to defend yourself from harm, and then finally you pay in having more of your taxes taken to fund an inefficient healthcare system that just had its workload increased for no particular reason. The Brandon "Commando" Prevey's of this world will continue to stock up on defensive armour, the barely-dressed Lily Tran's of this world will not.

But hey, we're stopping gangs. Wait, is there any gang operating in the Province of Alberta right now who gets an automatic exemption from this law?

Exemptions
4 Subject to the regulations, the following individuals or classes
of individuals are exempt from the requirement to hold a permit
issued under this Act:
(a) members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police,
members of a police service as defined in the Police Act,
and peace officers while acting within the scope of their
authority and in the course of their employment or
designation;

Did you really have to ask?

Fortunately, there is a way to punish the "Progressive" "Conservative" Party and Alison "Red" Redford for this (and other) bad pieces of legislation put out by her party since the dawn of the millennium: vote them out.

There is a strong right-wing alternative: Danielle Smith's Wildrose Party of Alberta. This particular legislation isn't referenced in any party's policy guides, but it's clear that if any party is going to be centered on the idea of returning Albertans their liberty on the highways, this is the one.

Red Redford is treating you like an errant child, telling you that you can't do something and then ignoring the societal collapse that comes with her abhorrent declarations. Will you put up with this? Or will you fight back on April 23rd?